Possibly, the greatest variable in air travel is weather. Weather conditions may have many elements, including winds, temperatures, lightning, thunder, icing conditions, rain, snow, turbulence caused by weather fronts, fog, smog, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Weather conditions are important, not only to the passengers but also to airlines, air traffic control personnel, weathermen, pilots and crew.
Lightning is one specific weather element that may occur during air travel. It has been reported that, on average, an aircraft is struck by lightning only about once in a given year. Historically, commercial aircraft have generally included aluminum skin which is electrically conductive. In the event that there is a lightning strike on an aluminum skinned aircraft, the strike commonly enters at an extremity of the aircraft, such as at the nose or other zone. The electrical energy or current carried by the strike typically passes through the aluminum electrically conductive skin of the aircraft and then exits the aircraft at another extremity, such as at the tail. No harm typically occurs to the passengers or to any of the equipment on board.
In the case of modern aircraft using at least some composite materials such as on the outer skin, additional measures are usually taken because such composite materials are not as electrically conductive when compared with an aluminum skin aircraft. One such measure includes a current return network assembly which may be provided at various locations on the partially composite aircraft. It is to be understood that the composite aircraft is not entirely composite and that there are areas of conductive material, such as aluminum, used on certain portions of the aircraft.
In the design of aircraft, the weight of various components is typically very important. The current return network assembly provided on aircraft is not usually a great concern, particularly in aluminum aircraft, which itself may comprise a large portion of such a current return network. However, with composite aircraft, it would be highly desirable to provide a current return network assembly that does not add weight to the aircraft because a reduction in the weight of an aircraft typically increases fuel efficiency.
Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such approaches with the present disclosure as set forth in the remainder of the present application including the drawings.